Bettona

The town of Bettona can boast ancient Etruscan origins, insofar as its foundation is dated at around the 8th and 7th centuries B.C. Being too small to be able to follow its own politics, Bettona's fate followed that of other more important towns0 nearby. In fact, after the barbarian invasions which destroyed its Forum, its Temple and its town walls, the vicissitudes due to the battles between the Guelfs and the Ghibellins, Bettona, which surrendered to the superior forces of army of Perugia, lost its independence at around the 14th century. Its reconstruction took place a few years later on the orders of Cardinal Albornoz, who had already inaugurated the building yard of the Castle of Spoleto, in Umbria. From that time on, the fate of the town remained tied to that of the Papal State, until the end of the latter's existence. Worth visiting are the church of St. Mary Maggiore, the small art collection in the Palace of the Podestà and the remains of the Etruscan and medieval town walls.